The art of video editing has evolved from its early days, in which linear video editing was the standard form of editing, to the current state the art that allows for non-linear video editing. As such, it is well-known for video editing software to allow users to modify a video and/or combine another video with the video. The process may involve collecting the videos on a computing device associated with the video editing software and the operator of the video editing software providing a plurality of user inputs to arrange the video(s) in a desired sequence. For example, the operator may utilize a video editing software to remove frames from the video, adjust sound and picture quality, add transitions between frames, or otherwise arrange the video in a selected format. The video editing software may then output an edited video based on the plurality of user inputs to arrange the video(s) in the desired sequence.
Unfortunately, such video editing software suffers from a number of deficiencies. One such deficiency is that the step of editing a video is typically the second step in a production process, with the first step being the actual recording of one or more video segments. Indeed, video editing software is commonly referred to as “post-production” software, providing for the editing of video segments after the recording and production of the segments. As such, video editing software typically does not allow for a user to make edits to video segments in real-time, instead forcing the user to either re-record a video segment, or fix issues later during the “post-production” editing step of the production process.
Another deficiency in the current state of the art of video editing is that video editing software is typically complicated in nature and, as such, associated with a rather steep learning curve, often requiring users to learn a wide range of editing commands and tools. Accordingly, such video editing software is often associated with video editing professionals, or novice video editors willing to dedicate the time, effort, and other resources to learn the various commands and tools associated with the video editing software.
In an effort to make video editing more accessible to the average consumer, having little-to-no video editing experience, more “user-friendly” video editing software has become available over the past few years. This is due, at least in part, to the increasingly widespread use of, and demands for, videos to convey information to relevant users, such as consumers and clients, in ways that are accessible, interesting, and informative. As such, instead of conveying information in a more static format on websites, by, for example, textual descriptions or still images, users can experience informative videos tailored to unique topics. While more user-friendly video editing software is becoming increasingly available, many consumers and businesses still use third-party video editing professionals for their video needs, because they simply do not have the time or skills to record, edit, and create a finished product in a professional manner. Moreover, even if a business spends the time to create a video of sufficient quality, it is unlikely that the business has the time to create multiple videos in an efficient and professional manner without the use of a third-party professional.
Accordingly, under the current state of the art, the creation of one or more finished videos of professional quality involves separate and independent steps, which must be replicated for each additional video that is created. Since such production processes involve multiple steps for each video segment, a user, whether a professional or novice, typically spends a great deal of time recording, re-recording, and editing each video segment. Moreover, since the user must record videos separately, even if the videos are related and share subject matter, the production process is inefficient and can become extremely expensive, especially when engaging the services of a third-party professional.
Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above, namely to provide a video editing software that allows for real-time editing of video segments, and that allows for the replication of portions of a video to allow a user to re-use the portions of the video in later-recorded video segments.